My dad and I used to fish off the bridge in the very early 1970's. It was open to traffic(about one vehicle a day) at the time, since the route 48 bridge was located just to the south of the old single lane bridge.

It was a great place to drop a fishing line or two, with the poles leaning up against the guard rail...and sit on a comfortable lawn chair in the road way.

I visited the bridge in the 1980's with my dad and the guard rails had been removed from the side and traffic had been kept from crossing there. Even then, there were chunks of the road bed which had chipped away from the joints of each span. The far east spans, without the overhead bracing, is what has fallen, as it appears the span over the South Fork of the Sangamon River is still there.

Thanks for posting the pictures that reminded me of a great time in my past.

me and my 2 boys were out in that area today 2-21-11 and found the bridge. They thought it was the coolest thing to find just back in the woods. they felt like they descovered a treasure that no one else knows about Its still there